Coasties Bring Hurricanes to Rain Threes

Walker Garrish caught the tip from Andrew Tillett and made a clean pass to Adam Carter, who was already cutting to the bucket. It set the stage for a good contest, that Hatteras won, 69-62.

There were not many Hurricane fans on hand to cheer the victory, as the ferry between Hatteras and Ocracoke isn't running.

The Coast Guard brought the players over in a skiff and two other boats. The boys on the team described the ride across the inlet as "cold," "wet" and "surreal."

Chris Johnson didn't agree that it was all that cold: "It was so warm and comfy in the cabin," he observed.

The girls concurred that the ride was chilly, but said it was an adventure, and that the Coasties were nice, and funny, even if they did make them wear those ridiculous PFDs.

Hatteras will make the same trip next Saturday, when they head to Ocracoke for another game.

The Hurricanes rained threes on Ocracoke all night, with a disturbingly well balanced trio of skillful shooters in Todd Midgette (20 points), Kyle Beierlein (21 points), and Daniel Arrelano (18 points). There's life in Hatteras, after an educational early season.

"This was only our third victory all year long," said Coach Earl Fountain, "though we have led and been in every ball game, and lost games on last second shots." The Hurricanes shot 13--18 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter.

#13 Midgette was hot from the get go, dropping two 3's in the early minutes. Then #12 Beierlein started hitting from behind the arc. There was a Dolphin doing a perfectly good job of defending, and Beierlein dribbled, squared up and knocked it down. Cold. After the fourth, or fifth poised and deadly three pointer from Hatteras, the Dolphins were down 33 - 17, and the home crowd was feeling a little unhinged.

Evin Caswell (13 points) stayed cool, and put points on the scoreboard, helping the rest of his community look less frantic. Walker Garrish (17 points) got a bucket and extra point, making it 23-33. My notes say "rebounds keeping dolphins in it," so that must be true. The crowd cheered loudly for a good defensive stop, and Wyatt Norris rode that energy to a three that made it 29 -33 going into the half.

In the third quarter, a few threes clanged off the rim for Hatteras. Finally! I thought. A Caswell three brought the Dolphins to down two, 41-39. Andrew Tillett hit the floor fresh from some bench time to open the fourth. Coach Allewalt said he was trying to deal with the three point dervish that was Hatteras, and he needed his quickest feet on the floor. Tillett ended the night with 14 despite playing under 20 minutes. A lucky bounce, and the scoreboard read 49 -50 with 5:46 left in the game.

Carter (11 points) and Midgette traded a pair of threes, then Midgette stepped back and shattered an NBA three--no, it looked even farther--that someone who filmed the game should put on you tube. I for one would love to see that again. The shot was so, so quiet, and yet it thundered, "You cannot defend me!"

The 'Canes showed Adam Carter the respect of putting a tail on him alone as the final minutes ticked off the clock and Ocracoke fought a deficit that hovered around 5. Enter Kade Nagakane, whose 3 with 26 seconds left was not enough.

Coach David Allewalt said his Dolphins may have come into it underestimating Hatteras, and that is a bad idea against any team, and always against rival Hatteras.

It was a pleasure to watch such skillful play after a sloppy girls opener, with loose balls zipping between hands and feet, lots of elbows, and teenagers collapsing on the floor. At times it seemed as if someone had oiled the game ball.

When Lucy O'Neal was on the floor, the level of play from both teams improved. Unfortunately for the fans, foul trouble had O'Neal benched for much of the second and third quarters.

An early three by Katie O'Neal started the ball rolling, and the Dolphin women jumped to a 10 point lead.

Tori Barnett (8 points) has tenacity, and she scored the first points for Hatteras. The rest of her teammates seemed more interested in getting rid of the ball, and rarely even looked at the basket. Get rid of the ball they did. The game featured multiple turnovers, by both teams.

The Dolphin women have played six games in nine days. There were plenty of reasons to cheer, but not many series of strong possessions by both teams.

The bright spots: Alma Flores moving really well without the ball to open up room for a pass from Diana Perez that appeared to move faster than the human eye can follow. 2 points! The crowd cheered Abby Morris' new ferocity. She was aggressive on both the boards and defense. Other things to celebrate: a zippy steal and spin move by Katie O'Neal, more than one nice block by Lucy, and a seamless pass from Katie to Josie Winstead for the score.

The score was Ocracoke 15, Hatteras 6 at halftime.

Hatteras finally decided to join when the game was 23 - 6. They scored two unanswered baskets, and then stole the ball and put it in for two while drawing a foul on Lucy O'Neal. They took advantage of their momentum, making the game 25 - 18. Madison Fairbanks scored all 6 of her points in the third quarter.

Hatteras found it hard to sustain the run, but at least now they were looking to score. The final was 35  -22.

Perez had 16, many of them in the second half when she hustled up the floor harder than anyone.

The next home games, against Mattamuskeet, begin Friday at 4 p.m.